Streaming Made Up 75% of Music Industry Revenue in 2018

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has released its annual year-end music industry revenue report. Revenues from recorded music in the retail sector reached $9.8 billion in 2018, which marks a 12% increase from 2017. Last year marked the third consecutive year of double-digit growth driven primarily by increased revenues from paid streaming subscription services.

The RIAA reports that 75% of the music industry’s total revenue was indebted to subscriptions to streaming services last year. In 2018, streaming services such as Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, Amazon Music, and others reached more than 50 million subscriptions in the United States for the first time. Additionally, vinyl sales saw an increase of 8% from 2017, reaching the format’s highest revenue level since 1988. CD sales dropped 34%. View the full report.